-- Those suffering from allergies may be breathing a sigh of relief today, literally.

The pollen count dropped from 139 last week to 83 this week, which is "low" according to Debra Hopson with the City of Huntsville Natural Resources and Environmental Management department.

The .12 inches of rain that fell Monday in Huntsville and another .25 inches that fell as of 4:30 p.m. today were instrumental in lowering the pollen count totals which reached the year's high of 4,633 on March 20, said Hopson.

The Tuesday rainfall brings the total for the month of April to 2.12, which is .32 inches below normal, according to National Weather Service meteorologist Tim Troutman. The total rainfall for the year is 17.79, which is .41 inches above normal. But it is much lower than last year at this time when the area had received 22.44 inches by mid-April, said Troutman.

The rainfall Monday and Tuesday is the result of an upper level system which has moved in the last 24 hours from northeast Texas into Arkansas, producing "quite a bit of moisture and clouds into the Tennessee Valley," said Troutman.

The last measurable rainfall was 1.29 of rain on April 5. Troutman said rainfall chances will end this morning with a slight chance returning Friday morning and a 50 percent chance Saturday.

Friday's highs will be in the lower 80s with mostly "sunny and clear skies," said Troutman. But he said temperatures will only rise into the upper 60s on Saturday. Otherwise, temperatures should be "pretty much normal" through next Tuesday with highs in the mid-70s and lows in the lower 50s.